The Süleymaniye Mosque and Complex

Where is The Süleymaniye Mosque and Complex?

The Süleymaniye Mosque and Complex is located in Fatih district of Istanbul. Süleymaniya Mosque was built on one of the seven hills of Istanbul by architect Mimar Sinan, was devoted to Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent. Mimar Sinan referred to Süleymaniye as the work of my craftsmanship. The comple includes medreses, library, a poor house - tabhane, an imaret - soup kitchens, a caravanserai, mental hospital - timarhane, baths and shops.The Süleymaniye Mosque and Complex

History of The Süleymaniye Mosque and Complex

The Süleymaniye Mosque and Complex was built the years 1550-1557 by the achitect Mimar Sinan for Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent. The mosque has four minarets, two of them two galleries - şerefe (balcony), the other two have three, a total of ten şerefes. This is said to symbolise the fact that Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent was the tenth sultan in the Ottoman dynasty and after conquest was the fourth sultan. If a mosque has more than one minaret , it means that it was built either by a sultan or by some member of his royal household.

The interesting aspects of the mosque require some exploration. For example, if you wonder how the mosque has withsood frequent and powerful earthquakes or why no soot has accumulated under its domes despie the oil lamps and candles that have burnt for 450 years, or how its wonderful acoustics work, you can discover answer here - in the hidden parts of Mimar Sinan's genius. The foundations of the mosque were given a certain amount of elasticity by place juniper piles and beams among the masonry in order to enable it absorb the shock waves of earthquakes. To avoid soot accumulation on the interior surfaces due to hundreds of candles and oil lamps, he found a very creative solution: the design of the mosque has created solution: the design of the mosque has created a ventilating current which brought all the soot to a special chamber situated over the entrance portal. The soot collected here was used to produce ink used in calligraphy employes in firmans, the imperial edicts. And He places 255 pots into the fabric of the dome, and by doing so he improves the acoustics of the building adn its thermal insulation.